2023 NAIA Women’s Outdoor Track & Field Rating Index – Week 7
NEW ORLEANS – We are officially in the homestretch of track & field season, with championships right around the corner. Let’s buckle up our seatbelts and go for a ride.
Top-ranked British Columbia continues to look as strong as ever heading into championship season. Life (Ga.) was able to ascend to the No. 2 ranking, with William Carey (Miss.) coming in at No. 3, Indiana Tech staying firm at No. 4, and Southeastern (Fla.) staying in the top-5 of the NAIA Women’s Outdoor Track & Field Rating Index, as released on Wednesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Association (USTFCCCA).
Only marks from the current outdoor track and field season have been used in this objective compilation.
NAIA — Women's Outdoor Track & Field
This Week's National Top Five
1
British Columbia
British Columbia
2
Life (Ga.)
Life (Ga.)
3
William Carey (Miss.)
William Carey (Miss.)
4
Indiana Tech
Indiana Tech
5
Southeastern (Fla.)
Southeastern (Fla.)
All TFRI Reports
Top-ranked British Columbia owns a sizeable lead on the rest of the field with the NAIA Outdoor Championships beckoning. Kiana Gibson improved upon her top-ranked 5000-meter time over the weekend, turning in a mark of 16:13.70 at the Portland Twilight, an event in which the Thunderbirds own the top four spots. She is also the top-ranked steeplechaser, as she ran that top-ranked time last week (10:11.52).
The Running Eagles of Life (Ga.) moved up to the second spot this week, despite none of their top-5 performances taking place this weekend. They continue to be led by arguably the fastest woman in the NAIA in Talayla Davis: she is top-ranked in the 100 meters (11.52) and in the 200 meters (23.63) and 4x100m relay (45.87), both of which she is second-ranked. Jennifer Batu’s top-ranked hammer throw of 58.82m (193-0) represents the other top-ranked performance to the Running Eagles’ name.
William Carey (Miss.) is another team that looks bound for an outstanding postseason. The Crusaders did not have a meet this week, but they continue to boast one of the strongest contingents of relay teams in the country with a top-ranked 4x400m squad (3:46.18), and a third-ranked 4x100m squad (45.93). They have also gotten top-ranked performances from Salieci Myles in the 100-meter hurdles (13.31) and Machaeda Linton (6.22m/20-5).
Fourth-ranked Indiana Tech represents yet another team that has the potential to make noise come nationals. The Warriors’ 4x100m team stepped up in a big way at the WHAC Outdoor Championships this past weekend, as they now own the NAIA’s fastest time in the 4x100m relay (45.76). Like William Carey, they also possess one of the NAIA’s strangest assemblies of relays, with a 4x400m relay time of 3:47.89 that is good enough for second.
Despite nearly falling out of the top-5 after being ranked second for most of the season, Southeastern (Fla.) has had just enough firepower to hold onto the fifth spot. Not having a meet this week could be a contributing factor, but the Fire continue to boast arguably the strongest 400-meter hurdle group in the country in Tenae Grigsby (1:00.42, third) and Namiah Simpson (1:01.73, fifth). Simpson also owns shares in the 4×100 and 4x400m relay teams which are ranked fourth (46.33) and seventh (3:49.97) respectively.
Rounding out the top-10 teams for the seventh week of the TFRI are Huntington (Ind.) at No. 6, Indiana Wesleyan at No. 7, Eastern Oregon at No. 8, Concordia (Neb.) at No. 9, and College of Idaho at No. 10.
The 2023 NAIA Outdoor Track & Field Championships will get underway on May 24 and conclude on May 26 in Marian, Indiana.
